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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24766396">Truth or Promise</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/C1ashi1dr/pseuds/C1ashi1dr'>C1ashi1dr</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Seven Days of Cophine [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Orphan Black (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Canon Compliant, F/F, Fluff and Angst, Fluffy Ending</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-06-17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-06-17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 07:15:34</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>995</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24766396</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/C1ashi1dr/pseuds/C1ashi1dr</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Cosima can still remember the first time, sitting together in Felix's loft, that Delphine spoke the words that would define so many of their interactions.</p>
<p>"Do you want me to tell you the truth or make you a promise?" </p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Delphine Cormier/Cosima Niehaus</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Seven Days of Cophine [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1789588</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>7</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>41</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Truth or Promise</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>this probably would have been better as a longer, more developed piece and maybe i'll come back and rewrite it. however, i wanted to get the prompt for today done so i'm happy to present "Truth Or Promise"</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Cosima can still remember the first time, sitting together in Felix's loft, that Delphine spoke the words that would define so many of their interactions.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"Do you want me to tell you the truth or make you a promise?" </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>That first time, their hands had been clasped together, sitting on the bed, just after Delphine had taken her blood sample. The room had been quiet, the candles the only source of light. Delphine's gloves were sitting next to Cosima, the tip of one of the fingers brushing against her thigh with every shift that she'd made. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"The truth," Cosima had said, clenching Delphine's hands tightly between her own. Promises, she would soon learn, were emptier than the glasses of wine they'd fixed, pleasant hum filling their bodies as Delphine explained her thoughts, her theories.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Delphine had known a little about the clone sickness, known the symptoms, the possible issues. Her words were steady, though there was a thick edge to them. And as she began to talk through it, telling Cosima what could happen, the clone reached out, gripped her hand tightly. It was as much to ground herself as it was to soothe Delphine's nerves. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"Promise me you'll do what you can, to keep the disease from spreading," Delphine said at one point, holding her face between cold fingers. "We have no idea how quickly it will progress in you, how far it is already. I do not want you to make this worse."</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"I'll do what I can," Cosima promised, feeling herself smile gently at the tender contact. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Soon enough, Cosima had yawned, Delphine had carefully kissed her, cradling her face gently. There had been a moment of silence before they'd blown out all the candles and gone to bed.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The words continued to crop up throughout the bouts of illness. After waking from getting high in the lab, sprawled out on the couch, curled so close that it had been hard to tell where one of them had begun and the other ended. There had been a moment of confusion, post high disorientation but Cosima recovered first, playing with Delphine's fingers until she'd come back to her, giggling slightly.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"We should not have done that here," Delphine murmured, her voice raspy from sleep and the remnants of the joint. "And your lungs-"</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"They'll be fine," Cosima had said, dismissing the fears with a wave of her hand. "If I can't enjoy a joint anymore, what's the point?"</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"Truth or promise?" Delphine asked, shorthand of that same question that had been asked before. Cosima smiled sadly, huffing out a slight sigh.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"Truth," She had said and before Delphine could continue, "the whole truth. Don't leave anything out again, please."</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"Your lungs cannot handle more strain, <em>cherie</em>," Delphine had replied, her gaze falling to their intertwined hands. "You may have made everything worse."</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"We'll find a cure," Cosima said, trying to store away the confidence she'd put into the words. "We have to. There are so many clones to save." She had held Delphine's hand tighter, grounding herself as she was so fond of doing. "We'll find a cure."</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>And so it persisted, time after time. Cosima, vision blurred with tears, having her words thrown back at her. How bitter it had been, hearing Delphine say she had to love them equally. That Cosima could not take importance over the others, no matter how Delphine felt. Despite what Delphine felt. The pain of betrayal had only grown, Cosima had fallen deeper and deeper into the piles of bullshit that permeated the situation and soon she'd found herself with no Delphine. Standing there, lying to Delphine as best she could, standing firm. Their meeting outside Bubbles. Their last night. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Months had passed. Her heart had fallen a little further into disrepair each day and when she'd asked Siobhan for reassurance, the words echoed in her head. Truth or promise. Siobhan hadn't given her the choice. Perhaps it had been for the best, never getting a choice. She wasn't sure what S would have said if she'd gone along with Cosima's plea for comfort. She'd given all that she could. Still, Cosima had wished for more than anything that Siobhan knew what she did not. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>And then everything had changed, as it so often did with Clone Club. They'd found the cure, Delphine, returned home from the island, and a whirlwind of activity. And in the basement of the comic book shop, curled up after their skype session with Siobhan and Sarah, staring at the ceiling as her hands trailed through Delphine's hair, Cosima savored the moment of peace they were allowed.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"Truth or promise?" Cosima whispered into the open air, wondering if Delphine was even awake to hear. They'd not spoken for a long time.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"Hmm?" Delphine hummed quietly, shifting to look at Cosima's face. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"Truth or promise?" Cosima repeated, wondering if Delphine would even remember. The way her face shifted was reassurance. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"Mmm, truth," Delphine mumbled, curling a bit closer to her side. Cosima found that, since their return, Delphine tried her best to keep her physically in reach, grabbing for her hand. Cosima caught herself doing the same thing.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"I trust you," Cosima said, startling herself with the words. "And I know your intentions have always been for the best, ever since I got sick, even if it didn't always seem like it. You could have been a bit nicer though." She gently poked Delphine's side, making her squirm away.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"It was not about being nice, <em>cherie</em>," Delphine muttered petulantly. "Though I suppose I could have been." </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"There's always room to be nicer, babe," Cosima said, pressing a kiss to the top of her head by way of apology. "But I'll stop asking difficult questions if you like."</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"Just for a little while," Delphine said. "Just a bit longer, and then I'll tell you everything." She looked up, met Cosima's eyes, expression almost unreadable beyond the unbridled love in her gaze. "I promise."</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>tumblr: <a href="https://joanwolfe.tumblr.com/">@joanwolfe</a></p>
<p>tomorrow's prompt: unspoken lies</p>
<p>take care of yourselves</p>
<p>~~ jo</p></blockquote></div></div>
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